American Go E-Journal

The 30th annual US Go Congress kicked off Saturday night atop the historic Hotel Pennsylvania in midtown Manhattan. Hundreds of go players gathered on the 18th floor of the venerable hotel to launch the largest annual go event in North America. Brief welcoming remarks were provided by Congress Director Matthew Hershberger, American Go Association President Andy Okun (at left in photo), Nihon Kiin Chairman Norio Wada and Asian Go Federation President Suh Daewon. Okun’s remarks were interrupted by the presentation of an impressive 30-foot scroll photo) by Wang Na (at right) from the Qingdao Go Association in China. The scroll, created by 85-year-old artist Yuan Youbin, was drawn from a book called “The Essence of Go.” The keynote speech of the evening was a riveting talk about the future of go by Frank Lantz, Director of the New York University Game Center (look for a report in an upcoming edition of the EJ). Finally, co-directors Will Lockhart and Cole Pruitt showed a well-received trailer for “The Surrounding Game”, their forthcoming documentary about go. The US Open – which includes Masters Division (formerly the NAMT) – starts at 9a sharp Sunday morning; top-board games will be broadcast live on KGS.- report by Chris Garlock; photo by Phil Straus